Another of my favorite stories from the Gospel of John has a peculiarity to it, namely that it only exists in some of the Johannian manuscripts, and then in different places. For this reason some modern scholars have thought it best to included it at the end of the Gospel rather than in any of the places it appears in various different manuscripts of John, which is generally Chapter Eight. The reason for this textual discrepancy seems to be that this story, that of the woman taken in adultery, is of puzzling textual authenticity, not because of its being of any questionable content.
The Pharisees brought to Jesus a woman they claimed had been caught committing an act of adultery. Right off we ought to be suspicious of this claim because it is unclear just how they and/or their cohorts caught this woman doing such a thing unless they themselves had set the whole thing up. In short, it looks from the outset like an “inside job.” The Pharisees once again try to trap Jesus by implicating him in contradicting the Law of Moses, which taught that such a woman should be stoned to death.
Here we encounter one of the most curious statements in the New Testament, namely: ”Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.” We have absolutely nothing by means of which to know what it was that he wrote. When they continued to press him for an answer to their question, Jesus bent down and wrote yet again. Then he said: “The one of you who is without sin should cast the first stone.”
The text then states that one by one the Pharisees went away, the eldest first. Perhaps this statement is meant to imply that the elders amongst the Pharisees were more perceptive or honest, or both, than the younger ones. Jesus and the accused woman were left standing there alone. Jesus is said to have asked: “Where are they? Has no one condemned you?” The woman answered: “No one, Sir.” And then Jesus said: “Nor do I condemn you. You may go. Do not sin again.”
It is not that Jesus refused to condemn the woman for her adultery because it should be apparent from the mock make up of the “trial” that the woman was not guilty. In the first place. Thus the irony of Jesus’ final statement: “Go and do not sin again.” These final words must have been uttered with a smile. The whole scene was nothing but a case of false accusation and Jesus knew it from the start. I find this one of the most revealing passages in the New Testament with respect to the revelation of Jesus’ character and religious sensibilities. I can see why both the Church tradition and textual scholars sought to keep this story out of the text even though it was and is unclear exactly where it belongs in the text of John.
Jesus is here presented as one who is far more interested in the wellbeing of the person of the woman than in the proper interpretation of the Mosaic law. To me this goes directly to the very heart of the Christian gospel. People and integrity before rules and regulations. This is the same Jesus who uttered from the cross: “Father forgive them because they do not understand what they are doing.” In addition, I have always loved this story for its very humanness and insight into Jesus’ innate character. I have no clue as to what it was that Jesus wrote on the ground. He probably was just buying time, perhaps hoping that the Pharisees would wise up.